Ohio State’s national championship last season proved to be beneficial both personally and professionally for Urban Meyer, but now the head coach will benefit financially from it for good measure.
In a press release Monday, OSU not so surprisingly announced that the university and Meyer have reached agreement on a contract extension that would keep the coach with the Buckeyes through the 2020 season. The new deal still needs the approval of the school’s board, although that’s expected to be nothing more than a rubber-stamp maneuver.
A raise was included in the new contract as well as Meyer, who made $4.536 million in total compensation in 2014, will make $5.8 million in 2015. The six years thereafter, the deal will average a whopping $6.5 million annually.
In June of last year, Alabama announced that Nick Saban, already the highest-paid coach in the sport, had agreed to a new contract that would pay him an average of $6.5 million a year. According to USA Today’s annual salary database, Saban earned $7.16 million in 2014.
Meyer had been the sixth-highest paid coach in 2014, but now leapfrogs Michigan State’s Mark Dantonio ($5.6 million), Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops ($5.08 million), Texas A&M’s Kevin Sumlin ($5 million) and Texas’ Charlie Strong ($5 million). Along with Meyer and those already mentioned, Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh ($5 million)and Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher ($5 million) are now in the $5 million-per-year club.
“Urban Meyer has done an excellent job strengthening our culture of commitment to academics, career development and winning championships,” OSU athletic director Gene Smith said in a statement. “Our young men continue to thrive under his leadership, whether on the playing field where they are national champions, through life skills pursuits like Real Life Wednesdays, internships and job fairs, and academically through program-wide efforts to monitor the progress of every student-athlete which has helped the team achieve its highest graduation success rate at 78 percent.
“Additionally, he continues to develop his coaches and attract talented leaders when needed.”
In Meyer’s three seasons in Columbus, the Buckeyes have gone 38-3 -- including a perfect 24-0 conference mark in the regular season -- won three Big Ten division titles, one Big Ten championship and, of course, the first-ever College Football Playoff.
“I am honored to serve as football coach at The Ohio State University and to represent this great university,” Meyer said. “It is a privilege to coach and mentor the young men in this program, and I want to thank President Drake and Mr. Smith for their support and their trust in me”